Hanford Reach may get Lasting Protection

The Hanford Reach of the Columbia River will be
considered for permanent federal protection by U.S.
Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt when he visits Pasco next
Tuesday.

The issue of long-term protection for the reach, the last
free-flowing stretch of the Columbia, has simmered for
years. The question has been whether the federal
government or local jurisdictions should manage it.

Babbitt will explore administrative solutions to protect the
reach, including declaring it a national monument. That
would put it permanently off limits to development. And it
would do so without Congress getting involved, which
Murray thinks a good idea.

"I began a long time ago trying to put together proponents
and opponents to come to consensus only to have
Congress not move on the legislation," Murray said. "I
thought it was important for the people in the region to
come up with a solution. ... It is time to do something to
save salmon."

The reach is home to the last healthy population of fall
chinook salmon in the state. The fish, called upriver
brights, support the last commercially viable fishery in the
Columbia.

"Salmon preservation is so important, this is a no-brainer,"
Murray said. "We have to move forward."

Babbitt's involvement was cheered by environmentalists
who have fought for years to protect the reach, and blasted
by local officials.

"I am amazed, flabbergasted, surprised," said Grant
County Commissioner LeRoy Allison. "It raises grave
concerns of whether Senator Murray is listening to the
people of the state."

Max Benitz, chairman of the Benton County Board of
Commissioners, fears the move will derail the efforts of
local officials to steer future management of the reach.

"They (the federal government) are coming into town and
saying, `We think this is in your best interest and we don't
want any input from the people we work for.' That is
disturbing," Benitz said.

Cynthia Bergman, a spokeswoman for U.S. Sen. Slade
Gorton, R-Wash., said Gorton backs preservation of the
reach but favors keeping local leaders involved.

"This is shocking," Bergman said. "The (Clinton)
administration is just on a roll."

The administration also wants to ban road construction on
43 million acres of public forest land without the
involvement of Congress.

Local environmentalists were thrilled.

"I have been working on this for 15 years," said Richard
Leaumont, conservation chairman for the Lower Columbia
Basin Audubon Society.

"Senator Murray has made the right decision, a
courageous decision, and we thank her for it. We are
confident when Secretary Babbitt sees what's here, he will
find a way to protect it."

Richard Steele of the Columbia River Conservation
League said he has been fighting for protection of the
reach since 1965.